<p>Well, did my post trip weigh in. And yes, indeed, lost 12 pounds.</p>
<p>Now I start eating protein and salads again, and exercising. Weight will go back up.</p>
<p>worknprogress,
Sorry to hear you are going through a hard time. The hospital vigil thing is so stressful. Good for you for sticking to your resolve in the face of your dad’s illness. Hope things improve soon.</p>
<p>Yeah, I guess the body’s shape basically stays the same, but it is easier to find clothes when there are fewer rolls of fat than more rolls!</p>
<p>sryrstress- For my body shape I have found I do much better with pants with a lower waistband. I find that I have dropped quite a bit in size in better quality denim such as Joe’s and Paige Jeans but have not had as big of a drop in pants styled for older women such as Talbots or J Jill. In pants that should sit at your waist I have to go bigger in the waist that the hips and crotch area are huge.
I will think about adding some upper body exercises.</p>
<p>Mom60 - agree ^^^!</p>
<p>One of the benefits of slacks that sit slightly below the waist is the elimination of the “waist gap.” I think many women have a waist/hip ratio that results in having a gap at the waistband in order to accommodate hips & butt. My jeans fit so much better now that I have moved to the style that sits below the waist. </p>
<p>Mom60 - Adding upper body exercises will pay off. One of the best exercises is doing a pull down on a lat machine. I sit on a chair and pull the bar behind my back. It stretches out my spine (or at least it feels that way), it strengthens my shoulders, and helps me maintain good posture. And while this is not the Dressing Young thread, I think posture is the single most important element of dressing young.</p>
<p>I could never wear pants that sit on/at the waist again. I always buy pants/jeans/shorts that sit below the waist - can’t stand sitting and feeling choked by a pant waist - they don’t even have to be tight and the fit bugs me.</p>
<p>I can tell just by pulling a pair of pants off the rack and looking at the length of the pant from waist to crotch if they are too high waisted or not. </p>
<p>Trying to eat light today because we are having a family dinner at a Mexican restaurant (my favorite) tonight and while I know can be careful, I also plan to enjoy! 
</p>
<p>So breakfast is an apple with some crunchy PB and a coffee with skim milk and a bottle of water - lunch is a salad with veggies, almonds, cheese and some dried cranberries. I will enjoy the salsa and chips but will take breaks in between bites so my hand isn’t constantly in the chip bowl. And SCOOP that salsa!!! :)</p>
<p>Friday report - down another pound and got my lab results - triglycerides are down about 30 points and almost in the normal range for the first time in at least 10 years (didn’t get it done before that). LDL nicely low (64); HDL a bit too low (39) but I’ve been lower. I’ll see my doctor next week and can’t wait to tell her all about my “Weight Loss for Dummies” regimen. She’s a great cheerleader, although I will have to admit that I never started taking the Niacin she prescribed last year.</p>
<p>I’ve always had an hourglass figure and am short-waisted; I need pants to come close to the waist; otherwise they really gap in the back. My favorite are the ones that have some kind of elastic waistband to help hold them in. I actually don’t like pants all that much; prefer skirts. My body does seem a bit different going down than it did going up; I definitely need more lift on top or everything looks odd! Fortunately I have a lot of clothes that I’ve been hanging onto “just in case”. It’s been fun testing them out.</p>
<p>DH got an “A+” from his doctor on his one month hip replacement checkup and was told he could do “anything he wants”. So we’ll probably be getting out to eat more often again; more challenges for me but he’s very supportive. We went to Greektown for lunch on the way home - I had one slice of that great bread, saganaki, a small cup of egg lemon soup, and a little bit of gyros. And felt totally stuffed afterwards. (Breakfast was Cheerios.)</p>
<p>Marilyn, Congratulations! What fantastic results! Reduced risk of heart attack and stroke is the ultimate reward for the changes you’ve made, isn’t it?</p>
<p>Wow! Good news from everyone! My scale still has a dead battery and I’m not replacing it until I have been in my back to school routine for a couple of weeks.</p>
<p>This won’t sound like a big deal to most of you but I actually went to the gym BEFORE work the other day! I am not a morning person. Going to the gym before school is a big change for me but I actually enjoyed my workout and plan to make it my routine at least a few days a week. I’m just too tired after work and just want to come home, make dinner and chill.</p>
<p>It sounds like a big deal to me, EPTR. I could never exercise in the morning. If I go to the gym, it’s from 8:30 to 10 - even later if I do something at home. I get the advantage of exercising first thing - I often intend to exercise at night but something interferes - but I just can’t bring myself to do it.</p>
<p>Marilyn!!! Fantastic!</p>
<p>And EPTR, when I worked, my secret to regular workouts was doing it in the morning. At night, lay out your workout gear and pack your work clothes. Then, in the morning, just auto-pilot yourself into the clothes and off to the gym. Breakfast after. Well-earned breakfast:). I have to admit, I am a morning person, so it was easy for me. But I haven’t found a good trigger since to ensure exercise.</p>
<p>Alumother,
I think laying out the clothes the night before is crucial, right down to having the sneakers at the foot of the bed. My gym is ten minutes away and my house lies between the gym and the school I work at so I’ll come home, shower and go to work.</p>
<p>Great job, Marilyn! Your LDLs are in the 60’s - WOW!!</p>
<p>EPTR - switching to morning workouts, if you can manage, makes you feel soooo virtuous! </p>
<p>Alum is so right. Getting the clothing ready is key. I also think it is important to splurge on having the right pieces for the activity/weather. Scrounging around and not having the right stuff isn’t good. There is nothing like having the right clothing combo handy.</p>
<p>I have been measuring my hips and waist for the past 6 months. Both numbers are going down. I did a little internet searching this afternoon and came up with the waist to hip ratio. Is this a number I need to be aware of?
I had my hips injected yesterday for the 3rd time this year on one hip and the 2nd on the other. I am hoping this will do some magic. It is hard to exercise when your hips are in pain.</p>
<p>Bump cause I need my CC “eat better” mojo!!!</p>
<p>As we get older there is one key to losing or maintaining weight…eat less. I think a lot of people (me included) fall into the “all I have to do is excercise & my weight will stay down”. This was true for many people (especially those who played sports in teens & early adulthood) when they were younger, but as our metabolism slows down, excercise is not enough. Media has brainwashed everyone into the whole “healthy eating” hype, I firmly believe it’s not WHAT you eat but HOW MUCH you eat.</p>
<p>I do agree that eating less is crucial, csdad, but in my experience if I eat the “wrong” foods - meaning sugar and empty carbs - I am hungrier and eat more. For me, eating the right foods is the key to losing weight. If I do that, the quantity falls into place.</p>
<p>The metabolism change is really striking. I never had a weight problem until I was in my mid-40’s, despite eating like a horse.</p>
<p>For me, I seldom eat because I’m hungry…I eat because I love the taste! Because of that I guess I overstate the “eat less” thing…</p>
<p>The “key” is to find the method that is good for your health - both physical and mental, gives you the results YOU are looking for, can be adapted life-long AND allows you to live and enjoy - if that means you can live and enjoy without any sweets ever or any butter ever - fine! But if “live and enjoy” means the occassional sweet at night or snack at your desk or dinner out at the local pizza joint then you need to adapt to be able to do that as well!</p>
<p>In other words, no quick fix, no “one” fix for all. But that’s what I love here - the sharing of many tries/successes/fails and the discussion of it all!</p>
<p>Well said Abasket.
Last night we went out as a family to our favorite Chinese place. I had a small spoonful of rice. The rest of my plate was just the meats and vegetables. Still enjoyable. I think I could have just skipped the rice all together. Might try that next time.
I have a lunch date today but it is with a very healthy eating friend. That should make it easier to make good choices.</p>